Melanie Lenau

Melanie Lenau plays the Holiday Inn Express Nashville Downtown Conf Ctr on Monday, October 12, at 4 PM. It's a solo show, so the whole set is just her—no backing band to hide behind. If you've never seen her, that's the first thing to get your head around: she's a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist who plays violin, guitar, and piano. Depending on the song, you'll see her move between them, which means the sound shifts as she does.

That versatility is where her style comes from. She describes it as a blend of gospel, pop-rock, blues, jazz, folk, country, and bluegrass—a wide net that covers a lot of ground. It's not a single sound so much as a collection of them, and she pulls from a long list of heroes: Dolly Parton, Shania Twain, Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Nicks, Patsy Cline, and Carole King. That lineup tells you exactly where she sits—right in the intersection of country, folk, and the classic singer-songwriter tradition.

She's originally from Michigan, and before settling here, she performed across much of Europe and in cities like Busan, South Korea, and Austin, Texas. Now she calls Nashville home, so this is a local show in her own backyard. The set is built around her own songwriting, and with the violin, guitar, and piano all in play, you'll hear how those different instruments shape the songs differently.

It's a free show, so there's no ticket to worry about. It starts at 4 PM on Monday, October 12, at the Holiday Inn Express Nashville Downtown Conf Ctr.